Australian Businesses Ignore Energy Efficiency Measures

Almost half of Australia’s businesses have not implemented any energy efficiency or energy reduction measures

Australian
Businesses Ignore Energy Efficiency Measures

Almost half of Australia’s businesses
have not implemented any energy efficiency or energy reduction measures

Only 5% have audited their energy
usage

Less than 2% of businesses have elected
to purchase ‘GreenPower’ (ref)

MakeItCheaper’s top 3 energy saving
tips

Sydney 24 August 2010: Australian
businesses are ignoring environmental concerns as they snub energy efficiency
and energy reduction measures.

According
to the latest Australian Bureau of Statistics figures[i] a meagre 5% of Australian
businesses have audited their energy usage and almost half have avoided taking
action to improve their energy efficiency.

Tim
Wolfenden, CEO of MakeItCheaper.com.au,
the independent business energy price comparison service, believes that the
statistics are misleading.

“These
statistics highlight a severe problem with the government’s education of small
businesses, not business apathy,” he said.

“The
government has invested millions of dollars in its GreenPower program but the
campaign will continue to fail when it means additional costs to businesses.”

Wolfenden
believes that the take up of the GreenPower program will continue to be snubbed
by businesses if they are expected to pay more for green energy, when they
already contribute to the government’s mandatory renewable energy targets
directly through their energy bills.

“There’s
a serious neglect by the government in educating and empowering businesses to better
manage their energy use.

Reducing
energy consumption rather than signing up to the GreenPower program is the
easiest and quickest way for businesses to positively impact Australia’s carbon
footprint,” he explained.

Wolfenden
strongly believes that to have a significant impact business energy efficiency
campaigns must focus on reducing energy usage and cost savings.

“If
a business wants to be energy efficient they should review their energy use,
cut consumption and switch to a supplier that will offer them a better deal,”
he advises.

An
average SME spends around $8,000 on their energy bill. By reducing their energy
use and switching to a cheaper provider they could save anywhere from $800 up
to $1600 per year.

Make It Cheaper: Top 3 Energy Saving
Tips

Air Conditioning:Turn
down your AC unit a couple of degrees – means it will work less, and use
less.

-Top
Tip: Use the ‘Recycle’ function on the air
conditioner. Cooling air from inside uses less power that cooling hot air from
outside

Make It
Cheaper is Australia's first dedicated business price comparison service.
Acting as an independent energy broker, Make It Cheaper is helping Australian
businesses make their electricity and gas bills cheaper, by offering a free and
independent comparison and switching service.